Taipei will express concern to Washington over a travel ban on three senior AU Optronics (AUO) executives, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said yesterday.
Harry Tseng (曾厚仁), director-general of the Department of North American Affairs, said Taiwan hoped the US executive branch would take a “flexible” approach and consider lifting the ban on the trio, in line with the principle of presumed innocence.
AUO vice chairman Chen Hsuan-bin (陳炫彬), CEO Chen Lai-juh (陳來助) and board member and Qisda chief executive Hui Hsiung (熊暉) were recently ordered by a US judge to surrender their passports and not travel outside California’s northern district without court permission.
A San Francisco court in June indicted the Houston-based subsidiary of AUO and six company officials, including the trio, on charges of conspiring to fix LCD panel prices from September 2001 through December 2006, an allegation made by the US Department of Justice.
“They went to the US voluntarily to appear in court, meaning they will not hide themselves. Given that they have approached the case sincerely, what’s the point of barring them from leaving [the US]?” Tseng asked.
Should the Department of Justice refuse to talk with Taipei, the ministry would consider raising the matter with the American Institute in Taiwan, he said.
“As a foreign government, there is little room to maneuver in a case under judicial review and the same applies to the US’ executive branch. Even so, we will do our best to communicate with the US government to see if we can change the situation,” Tseng said.
Police have issued warnings against traveling to Cambodia or Thailand when others have paid for the travel fare in light of increasing cases of teenagers, middle-aged and elderly people being tricked into traveling to these countries and then being held for ransom. Recounting their ordeal, one victim on Monday said she was asked by a friend to visit Thailand and help set up a bank account there, for which they would be paid NT$70,000 to NT$100,000 (US$2,136 to US$3,051). The victim said she had not found it strange that her friend was not coming along on the trip, adding that when she
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